In the book of Joshua, we learned how the people of Israel told Joshua, “the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed”, and in chapter twenty-four and verse eighteen of the book of Joshua, the people of Israel said, “the LORD drove out from before us all the people”, where we read,
And the LORD drove out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore will we also serve the LORD; for he is our God.
The verse reads, “And the LORD drove out from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land:” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and the LORD” which means “and Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God” “drove out from before us” or “cast away, thrust out and expelled in front and in the presence of the people of Israel” “all the people” which means “each, the whole and every one of the human beings”, “even the Amorites” or “also and indeed the Amorites whose name means ‘a sayer’ and were one of the peoples of east Canaan and beyond the Jordan, dispossessed by the Israelite incursion from Egypt” “which dwelt in the land” which means “who lived, abided and inhabited the territory, region, district and country”. Joshua or the writer shared how the people of Israel acknowledged that Jehovah God expelled the people of the territories including the “Amorites” who lived within the country.
The verse continues, “therefore will we also serve the LORD; for he is our God.” Joshua or the writer added the words, “therefore will we also serve the LORD” which means “wherefore, then and on this account shall we, the people of Israel, even so and indeed worship, labor and work for Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God”; “for he is our God” or “because, since and on account that he, Jehovah God, exists as our, the people of Israel’s, Supreme Deity”. Joshua or the writer shared how the people of Israel concluded that they would even so and indeed labor and work for Jehovah God because He was their Supreme Deity.
When we think through the words in this verse, we see how the people of Israel concluded and decided that they would “serve” Jehovah God. Jehovah God alone expelled the people of the promise land including the “Amorites” who lived there from their country, and because of this, Jehovah God alone would be their Supreme Deity. God wants to be exclusive in our lives, and because He alone sent His Only Begotten Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead after three days, when we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and equip us with His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and help us to live according to that truth so we “serve” Him alone as we make our way through the world. (See Luke 4:8; John 3:16; 16:!3; Acts 1:8)
Next time Joshua shares how “Joshua said unto the people, You cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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